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Explore the History of the Des Moines Fire Department at the Library

Submitted by Aaron on Mon, 2019-02-25 08:00

The Des Moines Fire Department celebrated its 135th anniversary last year, and the Iowa Association of Fire Fighters Local 4 in Des Moines is recognizing its 100th anniversary. To celebrate these momentous occasions, the department created a “Legacy Book,” honoring its predecessors and capturing the accomplishments of its current members. Several copies of that book are now available to check out at the Des Moines Public Library.

A six-person committee compiled and verified the information over a course of 18 months. The result is a sleek book with more than 100 pages covering the entire history of the Des Moines Fire Department from 1883 to today. It’s full of stories from major events in the department’s history, photos of each current member, and a full roster of *every* person who has ever been a member of the Fire Department.

The versions at the library include a special hand-written note from current Des Moines Fire Chief John TeKippe. They are available to browse and to borrow. The committee responsible was led by Assistant Chief Percy Coleman and included Assistant Chief (Ret) Joseph Giudicessi, Captains Doug Burke and Randy Jones, Senior Medic Jeramie Eginoire, Fire Medic Brandon Gray, and Fire Inspector Orlando Vivone III.